Pompey’s performance against Altrincham at Fratton Park in the Emirates FA Cup was well below their best.
But Kenny Jackett was pleased that they eventually got the job done to book a spot in Monday’s third round draw.
They certainly left it late, with Brett Pitman nodding home deep into stoppage-time after Josh Hancock’s late penalty had cancelled out an impressive Ben Close opener.
And Jackett felt that the visitors from National League North deserved plenty of praise for their performance.
The Blues boss said: “We have to say congratulations to Altrincham because they played very well and it’s two tricky rounds we’ve had to negotiate now.
“It could have gone either way and I didn’t feel comfortable at any stage, so credit to our opponents for that.
“I don’t think we either had the quality or got our approach right – and you certainly need one of those.
"It could have gone either way and I didn’t feel comfortable at any stage, so credit to our opponents for that."
“We had a lot of possession and got into some positive situations, but were then wasteful in the final third.
“Ellis hit the post and the keeper made a good save, but they’ve had opportunities to score of their own.
“We got ourselves ahead through an excellent goal from Ben. It was a great volley and gave their keeper no chance.
“Then we tried to build on that, but again were wasteful when we really should have put the tie to bed.
“That was frustrating and the penalty meant Altrincham got to 1-1. I’m pleased to say we then dug deep and got the winner from a set-piece.
“Ellis won the first ball and then Brett was able to lose his man at the far post to get the late goal and make sure we came out on top in a difficult game.
“It’s hard to win football matches on a regular basis, but we found a way and are on a positive run at the moment.”
Pompey will be ball number 46 in Monday evening’s draw, which see sides from the top-flight and Championship enter the competition.
Jackett said: “We’ve had two tough ties and we’re delighted to be in the hat. If we could get one of the Premier League big-boys here at Fratton Park, that would be great.”